X-Men Legends II: Rise of Apocalypse

"Great Game"

The PSP has another port, but this one has a lot more promise than we saw with the like of Dead to Rights. Activision set the bar pretty high with the first X-Men Legends game, but the question is how well the first portable version of the series will live up to the name. It would also be nice to see a quality hack and slash RPG on the system.

Story -

The game starts after an undefined amount of time passes from the first game. Magneto has recently been in a war with Apocalypse over his island nation of Genosha and Professor Xavier and Polaris have been discovered to have been kidnapped. The Brotherhood of Evil Mutants and the X-Men team up in order to free Genosha and rescue the kidnapped mutants.

Any RPG lives or dies by its story. Gameplay elements and concepts are nice, but it all comes down to the story. That is what separates mindless slashing from working to accomplishing a goal. The original X-Men Legends had a well defined story with a central base of operations. In XL2-ROA, however, the base changes depending on the Act that you are in. If you've ever played Diablo II, you know what you're looking at with this set up. You start in the Sanctuary in Genosha, then the Savage Land, etc.

The story in this game isn't all that bad, but it is a bit difficult to get into. Mutants have an annoying tendency to be kidnapped at the drop of a hat and the way the storyline is trickled out to you is not terribly helpful. Sometimes they feed you way too much information that doesn't relate, and other times you get nothing at all. The fact that the dialogue is voiced does help, especially with the ever present Patrick Stewart as Xavier, but it is a bit difficult to really get into it. Not a bad story at all...it's the delivery that really takes away from it.

Gameplay -
You have mutants. These mutants blow stuff up. You would think this would be fairly basic, but actually the controls are really non-intuitive. It's not something you can pick up and suddenly perform every move on the first sitting. When you have to stop for a second and attempt to remember what button you need to press to do what you want to do, there's a problem.

I normally don't include the manual in the review of a game, but this game really makes me rethink that position. It does a decent job of introducing the story to you and telling you all about the HUD, different menu screens, and how to set up online play. What it does NOT tell you is HOW THE DEVIL TO PLAY THE GAME ITSELF. A bit of a miss on that one. It casually tosses out info on Mutant Attacks and calling for assistance, but that's really it. No control layout, map, or anything. What you learn for the controls, you learn in-game. That's all well and good, but if you put down the game for a month and come back to it, good luck remembering how to do that. I recommend taking notes, myself.

The controls suck, but the camera actually impressed me. There is a specific control combination that allows you to swing the camera one way or the other to attempt to make up for the lack of the second analog stick, but it's really not often needed. The camera does a good job of turning when you do and allowing you to see what you need to see. Unfortunately, the environments themselves aren't quite so forgiving.

Graphics -
This game is the definition of a port. The same graphics, the same environments, and the same animations brought from the PS2 to the PSP. That's not such a good thing, though. The lack of graphical processing that the PS2 has in such high numbers really shows on the PSP. The characters are jagged and there are often flaws in the textures that you see on walls, etc. It's a beautiful game for a handheld, but a bit more time of optimizing it for the strengths (and weaknesses) of the PSP would have been very welcome. This is especially true in the first few levels on the game.

It has never been more true than in XL2-ROA: Dark enemies on a dark background do not a good game make. I was getting attacked by things that I couldn't even see. I even found myself attacking other members of my team a few times, thinking that they were the enemy. Playing the PS2 version, this isn't nearly as much of a problem. Some compensation should have been made for the PSP screen, however. It definitely would have amped up the experience, I think.

Sounds -
As mentioned above, sound is pretty good in XL2-ROA. For one thing, all the dialogue is voice, including cut scenes and conversations. Not necessarily the best voice acting in the world, but ANY voice acting on a handheld is welcome. Also, the music does tend to fit what is happening on the screen. It slows down when there aren't any enemies and really steps up when there are. Battle sounds and other effects port over quite well, particularly when using headphones, allowing for a great aural experience, in my opinion.

Replay/Shelf Life -
Assuming you can remember how to do the controls, there is quite a bit to come back to. With multiple hidden items to check for (including Iron Man, apparently), online multi-player, and danger room scenarios there is a lot to be enjoyed. It's just a shame that something as obvious as a control list would really take away from that. Still, if you take some time away and are able to get back into the control set-up, you'll be able to get back into the game. Typical RPG customizations, team setups, etc, also add to the overall replay options. Although I don't know anyone who will admit to actually having Toad on their team.

Wrap-Up -
It's not a terrible game. It's a bit above average overall. The loading times are better than other PSP games have been, which gives me hope for the future. (They timed in at around 40 seconds on average in my tests) Also, the graphics show definite potential. Finally, it's a decent RPG featuring favorite Marvel characters that can be taken on the go. That's a huge plus. It's also $50, a bit unpolished, and difficult to get immediately into. Because of that, I have to give it a 8 out of 10. If you don't need the portable aspect, you'll be happier with the home console versions.

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 11/03/05